Paper Short Abstract:

Based on a repertoire of 26 weekly recordings during educational walks in a Hong Kong country parks, this study introduces “soundmaking in movement” as an method to explore intimately the rich diversity of human and more-than-human correspondence and probe into the entangled becoming

Paper Abstract:

Known for its high-density urban environment, the city of Hong Kong easily impresses people with its 24 country parks accounting for 40% of its total area. Behind the apparent wilderness, the natural landscape of Hong Kong is deeply intertwined with fire, water, colonial history, human habitation, urbanization and geopolitical power shift. Anthropocene is not a metaphor or universal fact, but can be experienced and felt, should one choose to slow down and converse with the more-than-human. Inspired by walking studies (Springgay & Truman, 2018) and sonic geographies (Gallagher & Prior, 2014), we introduce “soundmaking in movement” as an approach to explore the rich diversity of human and more-than-human correspondence enabled by movement and temporality. Based on a repertoire of 15 consecutive weeks of recordings made in the same area during educational walks in one of the Hong Kong country parks, this study focuses on sound-making as inquiry into place and as correspondence-seeking. Particularly, we highlight the affective intensity generated in the process of soundmaking. In a narrow sense this practice establishes affective connections to nature and contribute to transformational intervention (Abson et al., 2017; Ives et al., 2018). More broadly, it provides one of the possibilities to contribute an earth democracy with diversified more-than-human representation (Latour, 1999).